Lake War Memorials Forum
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Joint Standing Committee on the National Capital and External Territories Inquiry into the administration of the National Memorials Ordinance 1928 Submission Contents Summary ........................................................................................................................ 4 Recommendations .......................................................................................................... 8 Introduction .................................................................................................................. 11 1. The administration of the National Memorials Ordinance 1928 ............................. 13 General ......................................................................................................................... 13 a. The membership of the Canberra National Memorials Committee ......................... 14 Case study: lakeside memorials ................................................................................... 15 Principles for CNMC membership .............................................................................. 16 Reform of CNMC membership ................................................................................... 17 Option A: JSCNCET overlap....................................................................................... 17 Option B: experts advising Minister ............................................................................ 18 Option C: augmented CNMC ...................................................................................... 19 b. The process for decision-making by the CNMC ..................................................... 20 Case study: lakeside memorials ................................................................................... 20 Principles for CNMC decision-making ....................................................................... 22 Reform of CNMC decision-making ............................................................................. 23 Criteria ......................................................................................................................... 23 Accountability and transparency .................................................................................. 23 Ministerial intervention ................................................................................................ 24 2 Attorney-General’s Department issues paper, June 2010 ............................................ 25 Out-of-session consideration of matters ...................................................................... 25 CNMC procedures ....................................................................................................... 26 Has the CNMC not been legally constituted since 1953? ............................................ 27 Correcting the CNMC’s past mistakes ........................................................................ 27 Other possible amendments ......................................................................................... 29 c. Mechanisms for the CNMC to seek independent, expert advice ............................. 30 Threshold question regarding experts .......................................................................... 30 Arguments regarding access to experts ........................................................................ 30 Protocols regarding access to experts .......................................................................... 30 d. Opportunities for improving transparency in the administration of the Ordinance . 32 Principles for improving transparency ......................................................................... 32 Reforms to improve transparency ................................................................................ 32 e. The appropriate level of parliamentary oversight for proposed National Memorials ...................................................................................................................................... 33 Principles for parliamentary oversight ......................................................................... 33 Reforms to improve parliamentary oversight .............................................................. 33 f. The appropriate level of public participation in the development of proposed National Memorials ..................................................................................................... 34 Principles for public participation ................................................................................ 34 Reform of public participation ..................................................................................... 34 2. Transition provisions for current proposals for memorials which have not yet been constructed ................................................................................................................... 36 General ......................................................................................................................... 36 Case study: lakeside memorials ................................................................................... 36 Options for the lakeside memorials ............................................................................. 38 Option A: rescind decisions ......................................................................................... 38 Option B: delay and reconsider .................................................................................... 39 3 Project slippage ............................................................................................................ 39 Principles relating to project slippage .......................................................................... 39 Dealing with project slippage ...................................................................................... 39 Privately funded projects ............................................................................................. 40 Principles relating to privately funded projects ........................................................... 41 Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 42 Attachment A: Background information on the Lake War Memorials Forum ............ 43 Attachment B: Legislative history of the National Memorials Ordinance since 1928 45 Attachment C: Membership of the Canberra National Memorials Committee since 1927.............................................................................................................................. 46 Attachment D: Canberra National Memorials Committee meetings March 2007- March 2010 .................................................................................................................. 47 Attachment E: Canberra National Memorials Committee membership options compared ...................................................................................................................... 49 Attachment F: Text of article in Canberra Times, 22 June 2011 ................................ 50 Attachment G: Preliminary statement of the legal position ......................................... 52 Attachment H: Analysis of National Memorials Ordinance, section 6, in relation to public participation and ministerial powers to recommend rescission of CNMC decisions ....................................................................................................................... 53 Attachment I: Copies of letters to Minister Crean May-June 2011 ............................. 55 Attachment J: Potential for “commemorative carve-up” between the proposed Canberra lakeside war memorials and the Australian War Memorial ......................... 64 Attachment K: Were key decisions of the CNMC properly made? ............................ 70 Attachment L: Does the National Memorials Ordinance 1928 allow the overturning of previous decisions of the Canberra National Memorials Committee? .................... 79 4 Summary Introduction The submission proposes: • principles to govern the approach to future National Memorials in Canberra; • reforms involving amendments to the National Memorials Ordinance, development of a Strategy for National Memorials and administrative protocols deriving from the Strategy. The submission argues that a reworked section 6(2) should effectively be the centre- piece of the amended Ordinance. Membership The essential formal features of the Canberra National Memorials Committee (CNMC) have been: • bipartisan representation from the Parliament; • a majority of parliamentarians; and • representation from the responsible Minister and the relevant Department. The most notable feature of the CNMC’s membership history in practice, however, has been the reprehensible failure of successive governments since 1953 to fill the two positions for A.C.T. residents. Attendance at CNMC meetings March 2007-March 2010 failed to reflect the legislation in other ways, as well. • Parliamentary members of the CNMC, from the Prime Minister down, neglected the CNMC. • The CNMC was only able to function because of creative use of the discretionary membership and quorum provisions of the Ordinance. • The CNMC became a convenient administrative tool of the National Capital Authority (NCA) rather than a bipartisan instrument of the Parliament. The CNMC of the future should have: • a membership representing the Government, the Parliament and the people; • a membership with a demonstrated interest in Canberra as the